The Mighty Spoon: Representing characters with chronic health conditions in videogames

Videogames infrequently represent characters with chronic health conditions. Given that such representation can help individuals to discover their own identity and empathise with others, as well as to demonstrate ‘what could be and who can be possible’ (Shaw 2015: 41), we need to address the lack of meaningful and authentic representation of chronic health conditions to better serve videogame audiences. To further academic discourse on how videogames represent chronic health conditions, I have: 1) considered the interactions between chronic health conditions, identity formation, representation, and videogame design principles; 2) developed an analytical tool that one can use to view and reflect on how videogames represent characters with chronic health conditions; and 3) constructed a creative artefact that exemplifies how videogames represent characters with chronic health conditions and how one can create characters with chronic health conditions. The resulting creative artefact, entitled ‘The Mighty Spoon’, is a collection of videogames of varying genres and comprises an interactive narrative entitled threesixfive, a vignette entitled Rise, and a role-playing game entitled The Denouement. The accompanying exegesis contextualises these videogames in existing representations of chronic health conditions and academic discourse on chronic health conditions and videogames, identity, and representation. In the exegesis, I record how I constructed creative artefact, my reflections on my process, and the resulting analytical tool to assist other creators in their own analyses and reflective-development processes.Submitted in the fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Creative Arts, University of the Sunshine Coast, 2018